Objective  To analyze the current status, hot topics, and frontiers of stem cell therapy research for knee osteoarthritis (KOA).

Methods  English literatures on stem cell therapy for KOA published from 2001 to 2023 were retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection. CiteSpace software was employed to visually analyze publication volume, citation frequency, author distribution, journal of publication, field distribution, keyword frequency, and clustering.

Results  A total of 2,420 articles were included in the analysis. The number of publications and citations related to stem cell therapy for KOA had shown a consistent annual increase, peaking in 2022. The publications of the United States, China, and Japan accounted for approximately 50% of the total publications. Zhejiang University in China was the institution with the highest publication volume. The most prolific authors included Sekiya Ichiro (29 articles), Koga Hideyuki (24 articles), and Muneta Takeshi (16 articles). The top three journals were Osteoarthritis and Cartilage (103  articles), International Journal of Molecular Sciences (84 articles), and American Journal of Sports Medicine (74 articles). The five main keyword clusters identified were human articular chondrocyte, KOA, cartilage repair, injury, and extracellular vesicles. The emergence words has changed from anterior cruciate ligament and autologous chondrocyte implantation ten years ago to extracellular vesicles and exosomes in recent years.

Conclusion  The research on stem cell therapy for KOA continues to rise, and in recent years, molecular mechanisms related to extracellular vesicles and exosomes have become emerging focuses in this field. In the future, further attention needs to be paid to the clinical application of stem cells in cartilage repair and molecular mechanism research.

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